US investment guru Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway has agreed to buy Precision Castparts, a leading supplier to the aerospace industry, for USD 37.2 billion, in the largest acquisition in the conglomerate's 50-year history.
Berkshire Hathaway will pay USD 235 per share in cash for all of PCC's outstanding shares, a 21 percent premium on PCC's closing price of USD 193.88 Friday, the companies said in a joint statement Monday.
Including Precision's debt, the deal is valued at about USD 37.2 billion, eclipsing Berkshire's 2010 acquisition of rail operator Burlington Northern Santa Fe in a cash-and-debt deal valued at USD 36.5 billion.
Precision Castparts will keep its name and its headquarters in Portland, Oregon, as a wholly owned subsidiary of Buffett's holding company, which currently owns about 3.0 percent of its stock.
The deal is subject to approval by PCC holders of the outstanding shares and by regulators, and is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2016.
"I've admired PCC's operation for a long time. For good reasons, it is the supplier of choice for the world's aerospace industry, one of the largest sources of American exports," Buffett, Berkshire's chairman and chief executive, said in a statement.
Precision Castparts manufactures complex metal components and products for the aerospace industry, including aircraft makers Boeing and Airbus, and also products for chemical processing and the oil and gas industry.
